Tomak was enraged.

The female wouldn't grant him a warrior's death! Instead, she'd prefer to watch him die from blood loss! He prayed that Cetanu would have her die an agonizing and humiliating death, something that would stain her bloodline forever.

To take matters into his own hands, he weakly started the countdown sequence to set off the bomb that would destroy them both, but just when he thought he'd have the last laugh, he watched in utter shock as the female sucked out the energy from his gauntlet!

The bomb was deactivated.

He snarled, cursing her to the marrow of her brittle bones.

However, it seemed too much for the little female to handle as she struggled to keep the energy from his device inside of her lithe frame. And when it was finally released like a pent-up storm, it was directed at the chasm's wall, weakening its integrity and causing it to collapse in. He had high hopes that the rubble from the landslide would be their end, but it stopped a few feet from his position.

He cursed.

If the lou-dte kalei hadn't thrown the only weapon he could have reached, then he would have done the job himself.

"Owww," a small, pained voice pulled him out of his brooding. The girl slowly sat up, coughing the dust from her lungs. She waved at the fine particles in the air, swirling them about.

Tomak snarled, wishing to kill the wretch. Looking down, he noticed a good size rock beside his foot. Thrusting with his good leg, he kicked the rock in the direction of the girl. It missed her, but she seemed to understand his intentions.

"Really?!" she aimed him a scolding look. "This was all your fault to begin with!"

His eyes widened in outrage. How dare she!

The stretching of his mandibles was the only indication she had when he was going to roar again. Spinning around, she quickly covered her ears and tensed in anticipation. When it came, (and it did), it was full of vigor, not lasting quite as long as the last one though. When she shakily lowered her hands and turned around, she saw how fatigued he looked. He was losing blood fast.

Rae had to admit though, other than his poor attitude and sickening intentions, he was quite the sight. First off, his mass was humongous! Human men looked like mere twigs in comparison to his branch sized muscles! But as Rae briefly admired him, she wondered how she even found it within herself to throw something so large and heavy into the ravine. It had to have been pure luck. There was no other explanation for it. Adrenaline can have a powerful effect, but could it really do that?

Suddenly, he lurched to the side, trying to get up. Bad idea. Another whine slipped from his panting maw. Its eyes squeezed shut, then blinked open again. Constantly fighting.

Lowering her eyes in regret, Rae avoided looking at him. She felt horrible that something so glorious had to die a slow, agonizing death.

Strangely, her mind went back to when she was snowboarding off the trail. She distinctly remembered falling and hitting her head hard enough to be knocked unconscious. It must have been a tree well, there was nothing else that could explain her predicament. Many die each snow season from such devastating accidents, unless someone got to them in time. Understanding this, Rae recognized that she should have died.

Yet here she was.

The next thing she remembered after everything went black was waking up in an unknown location, then not a minute later she came face to face with him. Or quite literally, face to chest. She had no memory of crawling out of the ditch, and that was what bothered her. Their meeting was not a coincidence. There was really only one explanation.

He had rescued her.

It was the only thing she could conjure up. The only thing that clarified her survival. How else did she escape the tree well and end up alone, a few miles away from the mountain? Even though his plans were to kill her himself, he still went out of his way to save her. It wasn't much to go by, but it was something at least to rationalize her odd compassion for the creature.

It was ridiculous that she owed this thing a debt of gratitude. And unfortunately, the only way to pay him back was to return the favor. A life for a life. She couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't kill her in the process though.

She sighed.

Resisting the instinct to stay at a safe distance, she moved closer to his downed position and heard him growl faintly. How could she convey that she wanted to help without getting kicked in the gut again? Would he even care?

Perhaps she could make herself appear less threatening. With his mask off, she decided that it was only fair if she removed hers as well. The cloth mask was already hanging around her neck, so she lifted the large goggles next. With it resting on the rocky ground, the last thing left to be removed was her black helmet. Her trembling fingers reached up and grasped the buckle under her chin and unfastened it. Once it was unclipped, she tossed it aside.

Turning back to address him, she noticed a clear change in his expressive eyes. The amber orbs traveled from her face, up to her messily braided dark brown hair, then back to her face again. Those predatory eyes were filled with a tinge more of curiosity than earlier, but as she took a step closer that look was replaced by his former aggression. He opened his mandibles, baring his sharp teeth threateningly, while continuing to hold a steady growl.

"Shhhhh," she hushed soothingly, as she steadily knelt down. She was careful to avoid his good leg this time. "Let me get you out of here," she spoke softly. "Let me help you," she urged in a whisper.

His growl shuddered to a stop and his expression changed to what she could only assume was a mixture of pain and irritation.

Her eyes scanned his impaled limbs. His leg was pretty bad, worse than his arm. She would have to remove the stick in his arm and tie something tightly around the wound to stop the blood, however, the leg wasn't so easy. It may have gone through a major artery in his thigh and if she removed the obstruction, he would certainly die of blood loss.

Rae looked up out of the ravine. It was too steep to climb out with the big guy over her shoulders. She had to figure that he was about four-hundred odd pounds. It would be a new record for her. She could maybe carry him a short distance up, but not that high. It was too much of a risk.

As the dust finally cleared, her eyes then wandered to the rockslide next to them. The boulders seemed to progress in height as they went, but the damage from the blast was far worse than that.

Her mouth parted in surprise, but as soon as it did, she yelped, quickly remembering the condition of her jaw. In reaction she jumped to her feet and angrily kicked a stray rock, watching it tumble amongst the ravine's rubble. She paused.

It wasn't a solid wall anymore. It was a crater. A mile of packed rock and dirt that gradually ascended from the bottom of the ravine to the icy surface. The energy from the bomb had acted like a concentrated laser. She looked back down at the alien, now realizing how advanced their kind was to contain such mass destruction in a small device. Not even a modern thermonuclear bomb could leave such an impact.

At least climbing out wouldn't be a problem, but unfortunately time wasn't on her side. She had to move him now. He had to stay alive for at least an hour longer for her to get back to the house without anyone seeing him.

Dropping her gaze, she looked at the male's arm. As much as she hated the thought, it needed to be done. She tenderly reached out, her hand shaking slightly in fear. Those powerful mandibles opened and closed while his critical eyes followed her hand as it gripped the stick firmly. "I'm really sorry, but this has got to come out," she drew in a shaky breath, "On three… okay?"

He closed his eyes.

She steadied herself, the snowy rubble crunching beneath her shoes. She clenched her teeth. "One," then with a solid jerk, she ripped it out.

The alien roared in agonizing pain. Glowing green blood soaked into the dirt ground as it dripped down his tricep and shoulder in steady streams.

Quickly, Rae took her already torn jacket and forcefully ripped part of the arm and then wrapped it around the wound, knotting it tightly to try and cut off the blood circulation. "I'm sorry about this," she winced.

His chest was rising and falling vigorously, breathing in and out as he tried to ignore the pain. When he opened his eyes, he seemed to realize what she had done. And before he could register what she was about to do next, Rae reached over and snapped part of the wood in his thigh.

His quaking snarl made her flinch.

"I know, I'm sorry," she soothed. Her goal was to simply make it stick out less, decreasing the chance of it bumping into her when she would attempt to carry him. Which brought her to this next part. This would prove to be her finest hour as she had never carried something so heavy for such a prolonged period of time before. She was aware of her increased strength, but this was pushing it.

If this creature was to survive, she had to consider the scary task of lifting him before the thought of walking could even enter the equation.

She released a nervous sigh and tried to psyche herself up.

He growled as she closed the space between them. But she ignored it and instead hugged her arms underneath his, being careful to avoid his tender shoulder. Now in position, Rae instructed him to use his good leg to stand for her. She just needed him upright so she could carry him properly, otherwise lifting him like this might do more harm than good.

In one hefty move, she yanked him up.

The creature hissed at the sudden shift. When he balanced his weight on the only working limb he had, he almost collapsed again.

"Easy! Easy!" Rae held onto him as he wobbled unsteadily. Working as fast as she could, Rae shifted her dominant foot in between where his feet would be and grasped his right forearm to lift over her head. Now ducking forward, she placed his arm across her neck and shoulders. Continuing to have a firm hold on his right arm, she began to squat, taking on some of his weight, and once she was low enough to reach, she used her right arm to slip between his legs and grab the back of his right knee. Using his arm and knee as her two grips, she finally pulled him onto her shoulders into a fireman's carry.

Now was the crucial point.

The muscles in Rae's legs shook violently as they slowly straightened. She exhaled forcefully, her body resisting the initial reaction to such immense weight being carried. Rae locked her eyes on her vantage point, mentally preparing herself for a lot of pain. But before she started the trek, she moved his right arm across her chest and with her right hand, let go of his knee and securely wrapped the entirety of her arm around the circumference of his leg, firmly grasping his arm with her hand. Now her left arm was free to help her balance as need be while she walked.

This might take a while, she thought grimly.


"Colonel Williams! Sir, we have a situation!"

A stocky silver haired man made his way over to the central screen where several of his soldiers were busy monitoring for any threats. "What is it, corporal?"

"There's been an earthquake sir," the soldier replied, briskly walking by with a transmission in hand.

There had been nothing exciting all week and although monitoring was a large responsibility that he took very seriously, it just wasn't like being in the action. "Where?" the Colonel peered ahead at the large screen in rapt interest.

"Eighty-five miles Northeast of us sir."

He frowned. As he well knew, the coast guard in that area was busy handling a cleanup along the border a few states south. They would be of no help on this one. And being in the business as long as he had, he knew the drill. From past experience, these were the worst natural disasters in his opinion. They came with no warning. "How big was the quake?" his eyes darted to the nearest soldier.

No hesitance. "Five-point-two sir."

He eyed his men carefully, "Did any of you feel it?"

"No sir!"

He took a moment to think. Briskly leaving his station, he stopped short of the door and addressed his trustworthy Lieutenant who was waiting. "Contact the U.S Geological Bureau immediately," he turned to make his leave, "I want to know how many were affected, what structures were compromised, the radius of the damage done, and if this thing's done talking! Understood?"

"Yes sir," he confirmed.

"Get the trucks loaded with relief supplies and prepare the troops to move out."

The Lieutenant watched his commanding officer leave then turned and yelled the orders.


Loud stumbling steps disrupted the peaceful aura of the snowy forest. Puffs of heavy white air blew from Rae's parted lips. Her legs wobbled from exhaustion and strain as she climbed yet another cursed hill.

As she reached out to grab another tree trunk, a bead of sweat rolled uncomfortably between her shoulder blades and further down her back. Rae was regretting her decision, but she was too close to give up now.

The creature's armor was rubbing uncomfortably against her shoulder with each movement made. Before it was just an annoyance, but up to this point, it had grown painful. She had no doubt the flesh was rubbed raw.

"Please tell me I'm not carrying a corpse," she tiredly smacked his calf.

She was relieved to hear a weak growl.

"All I ask is you stay alive for ten more minutes," she huffed, digging her toes in the snow as she ascended higher. From their angle, she could spot the house further up the bank. Of course, they would have been there sooner had she taken the public route, but no, she had to have been rescuing a psycho lizard man that weighed tons!

As much as her body was begging for a break, she knew that if she stopped now, it would be for good. So, she trudged on.

A few minutes later, Rae had conquered the hill and was now in the backyard. She didn't know how she was going to explain this to Naomi, but she had to try. Rounding the corner, she stopped dead in the driveway. That's weird.

Where was Naomi's car?

Ignoring it for now, she stumbled up the porch steps and tried the handle, hoping she didn't have to dig for the keys. To her surprise, it didn't need turning to open. Just the faintest touch did the trick.

Rae hesitated. The hairs on her neck prickled in nervous anticipation. She tried to make her heavy breaths less noticeable before taking a creaky step further.

Upon entering, her head turned back and forth. She half expected someone to jump out from behind the door. Other than the neutral light flooding in from the doorway, she stood there in the center of the room, carrying her crushing load in complete darkness.

Focusing on her surroundings she noted her labored breathing, the armor and impossible weight bearing down on her back, cold crisp air filtering through her nostrils, and of course the alarming shadows playing with her vision.

Breathe, she told herself. There is no one here… you're getting yourself worked up over—

*Bzzzzzz! Bzzzzzzzzzzzz!*

The sudden and horribly timed vibration of her cell phone almost made her lose her balance. The tension was broken as she weakly tugged her phone out of her back pocket with her free hand. "Hello?" she answered, grunting to balance the enormous male lying limp over her shoulders.

"Rae?! Oh, thank God. Are you alright?! I was calling your phone, but you weren't answering! I was looking for you all day!" Naomi's voice came through strong, though sounding anxious and tired.

"I'm okay. Just fell and hit my head pretty hard on one of the runs. Thought it would be best to stay in the lodge and sit for a bit. Then I uh… went for a walk to get some fresh air. Sorry, I should have called you." She stumbled into the master bedroom and roughly deposited the alien onto the mattress. It creaked in protest.

The male whined and growled, feeling pain again.

Rae froze, hoping Naomi didn't hear it.

"Yeah, you should have! Now where are you right now?!" Guess not.

She almost released a pent-up sigh. "Uh… I'm at the house, why?"

"Because there was a big earthquake and they're shutting down the mountain and telling everyone in the houses nearby to evacuate immediately."

Earthquake? she frowned. It took her a second to realize.

The bomb.

The crater.

Oh God.

"Rae? … Rae, are you still there?"

Rae blinked out of it, "Yeah! Yep! Just… piling stuff into the backseat of my car as we speak."

"Good, I'll let security know that you are okay, but please call me when you're safely at home. "

"Will do."

"And Rae?" Naomi stopped her from hanging up. "I'm sorry this wasn't the break you wanted."

Only half listening, it just occurred to her that the alien was silent, so she went to the bed and checked. She had to find a pulse and end this conversation fast, "Don't worry about it, I'll call you later."

"Okay, b—" Rae hung up. He was her main concern right now.

Once the lights were on, she tossed her phone aside and moved her fingers to rest firmly under his jaw where the carotid artery normally would be. "Please," she begged, adjusting her fingers. She felt a pulse flicking against the pads of her fingers, "Thank God," she breathed. But she'd need to operate quickly if she was to save him.

Rushing out of the room she ran into the master bath. She started opening all the drawers and panels, frantically searching for supplies. She found tweezers and some gauze. She then ran into the kitchen and pulled out a large plastic container and began filling it with warm water. After snatching a dishcloth, she went back into the bedroom.

This time he was awake and looking directly at her.

They made eye contact. Her fear entwined itself around her, filling her with anxiety and making her chill to the bone. "Wash hands," she mumbled, walking back into the bathroom. She wanted to get away from him, from those eyes. It put her on edge. She felt like a bunny being watched by a fox. Perhaps that wasn't a good analogy. More like a mouse in the presence of a lion.

Wasn't there a fable about that or something? The mouse going to the aid of the lion and rescuing him? she remembered faintly. At least the lion had the decency to show mercy to the mouse, Rae couldn't say the same for Cold, Dark, and Growly out there.

As she ran the hot water over her hands, she gasped now noticing the horrid burns on her right palm. It must have been from the bomb's energy. She shook her head, trying to distract herself with more important matters and continued to scrub up to her elbows, now staring at her reflection in the mirror. She looked like a victim. Well, she technically was. Her braided hair was frizzy and wet with sweat, but her face looked much worse. She had dry blood smeared under her nose and her jaw was black and blue. Her right cheek was all cut up, and with the face mask completely removed, she could see bruising in the distinct shape of large fingers from when he was choking her.

Why didn't she just let him die? He had tried to kill her, not with a gun to the head or a knife to the neck to make it quick, but he had physically and brutally beat her. Yet here she was about to do surgery on him, to save his worthless life. For the hundredth time she wondered why she even cared.

"Rae, I need you to promise me something."

She shut her eyes and leaned heavily against the sink, trying to block out the voice.

The memory.

"Rae."

She blinked her eyes open. After all these years it still hurt to hear his voice. She shut off the now scalding water and dried her hands. Standing tall with a heavy sigh, she looked back at her reflection in the mirror, "Fine," she gave in. "But this is the last time and I mean it. After this I'm done."

She exited the bathroom and walked over to the bed, ignoring the being's penetrating stare.

Knife.

She needed a knife. As she turned to retrieve one, a noise made her pause. He grunted again, like he was trying to get her attention. She looked over at him and swallowed nervously.

She watched his throat work as he produced the words, "Mmmed kitttt."

"What?" she tried to distinguish what he was saying.

"Mmmed kittt."

His scratchy voice was so unnerving. She frowned mouthing out his words, "Med kit?" Then it hit her, "You have a med-kit?"

"Yesssss," it breathed the word.

"Where is it?" she kneeled beside the bed.

"Backkkkk."

"Back? Back there?" she pointed outside.

"H'ko!" he growled sharply. "Backkkk!"

That couldn't have been a firmer no. She put the pieces together and realized, "Oh, your back. It's on your back."

He was either too tired or too frustrated to answer so he gave a deep nod instead.

Gently slipping her hand between the solid mass that was his lower back and the firm mattress, Rae felt for something out of place. She worked her way up until she felt a large bulky case along one of his shoulder blades. Getting a good grip, Rae managed to unhinge it. She brought it up from behind his shoulder and turned it in her hands. There had to be a way to open it somehow.

With a growl, a large, scaly hand intercepted her and snatched it away. Using his somewhat functional hand to maneuver the piece into a better hold, the alien placed his fingers against a panel along one of the case's surfaces. It slid open partially with a hiss but stopped halfway. It looked dented. Too damaged to open fully it seemed.

Rae flinched hearing a vicious snarl and scurried out of the room. She didn't need the med-kit to help him anyway, she had all she needed. Entering the kitchen, she swiftly obtained a knife from the block it was sheathed in, then hurried to wash it as best she could, before running back to the bedroom. Upon entering she saw the metal case being hurled violently in her direction. With a gasp, she dropped to her knees, just managing to duck in the nick of time. She scrambled to her feet and gathered her supplies on the side table.

Ignoring his threatening growls and death stares, she checked his wounds and found they were beginning to heal with the wood in it. She had to remove the obstructions before she could treat the wounds properly. But there was, of course, one problem.

She didn't have an anesthetic to give him for the pain.

Rae breathed in deeply, hoping he wouldn't make horrendous sounds. She placed her hand against his warm chest to steady herself. "I'm sorry," was all she managed to whisper, before the knife cut into his flesh.

For his sake, she was thankful he didn't squirm or move. But from the tension in his bulging biceps and the grunting sounds he made as she made small precise incisions, she was sure it wasn't any less painful for him than anybody else.

After a few minutes, Rae managed to clean his shoulder wound of any splinters of wood. She then rewarded him with a warm wet washcloth, dabbing it and wiping away the neon blood. After wrapping it in a warm towel, she tied it securely.

The leg was the big job. If she didn't hurry, he would have major repercussions. Had the branch hit a major artery, he would have already been dead, so it had to be removed delicately so the artery in his femur would stay intact.

She disinfected the tweezers before digging into his leg muscle. His leg quivered in agony. "You are doing an amazing job," she encouraged. She grabbed a hold of a nasty shard that was bone deep. If she ripped it out, she risked harming his artery and within minutes he would bleed to death. So, she did what she could, carefully cutting around the wood, before gently pulling it out.

Rae felt like she was playing the board game Operation, only worse. Much, much worse.

It certainly wasn't easy, but she eventually cleared his thigh wound too. However, it wasn't the end for him. If those wounds didn't clot soon, all her hard work would be for nothing.

He must have realized that too. The alien roughly nudged her shoulder and spread its fingers expectantly. "Knife."

He had no trouble saying that word. Did he intend to take his own life? Rae shook her head. She put away the knife and proceeded to undo the straps to his chest plate.

The alien snarled, his displeasure boiling to a climax as he watched her remove the only protection he had.

Getting somewhat used to his outbursts, Rae didn't so much as wince. After gently removing the somewhat weighted armor piece and placing it beside the bed, she returned her attention to him. Her eyes widened, seeing the size and pure muscle of his upper body. If she didn't know any better, it would have seemed she was working on an alien bodybuilder. His abdomen had the most impressive carved 6-pack she had ever seen, or was that an 8-pack? The indentations of his muscles made her mind almost stutter.

Managing to refocus her thoughts, she firmly placed her hands on the center of his chest, in between those god-like pectoral muscles.

She went to close her eyes, when she felt the vibrations of his growl through her palms. Rae sighed and looked at him. "If it wasn't already obvious, I'm not going to hurt you."

His amber eyes bounced about her face taking in her words, and to her relief, his growling seemed to stop.

"Now hold still." Rae closed her eyes and tried to concentrate on what she was about to do. A breathing exercise always did the trick.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

She thought about the overflowing energy inside of her, versus his depleting levels. There was plenty to go around. All she had to do was open herself to him. Relaxed and focused, she slowly allowed the exchange.

Tomak didn't understand this female. He had growled when she laid her cold hands on him. Being that he was too weak to try and fight her touch, he allowed it. He didn't fail to notice how careful she was when treating his wounds moments ago, and it disgusted him.

He watched her helplessly as she closed her eyes and took deep, relaxing breaths. It was then that he saw her hands begin to glow. His muscles bunched up seeing it. He had seen the damage those hands could do. The crater she left was proof of that. And now those same hands were on his chest. If given enough energy, she could sear a hole right through his chest cavity, like a kiande amedha completing its embryo stage.

Then unexpectedly, he felt a weighted tingling sensation start from his chest and spread outward to his limbs.

Tomak would never confess it, but the feeling was very pleasurable. His eyes fluttered shut, enticing him to fall asleep. And as much as he tried to fight it, a purr erupted from him. After a minute, curiosity forced him to open his eyes and when he caught a glimpse of his leg, his purring stuttered.

His wound began to shrink and rapidly heal as new flesh took its place. It was correcting the damage and erasing any evidence that it had been impaled in the first place! He looked over at his shoulder and found the same results.

But it did not heal fully. The female's face contorted into a frown as her hands shook, before returning to their normal complexion.

He heard her grumble something between clenched teeth before quickly closing her eyes once more, this time squeezing them shut, as if she was struggling to repeat the actions. Light from her hands shone once more, but as the seconds ticked by, Tomak began to notice her breathing pick up.

His eyes traveled from her hands up her arms, where he saw the muscles twitching from strain. His eyes continued the trail from her arms to her shoulders, then to her neck and finally her face. A bead of sweat dripped down her temple and deep frown lines marked her forehead as she began to struggle for control. She began to clench her teeth, like she was in pain.

He heard her grunt, before collapsing to her knees. The tingling sensation faded, and aching pain returned once more. His shoulder and leg were much better though and to his surprise his right arm that was disfigured, was somehow corrected, but as he lifted it, a jolt of pain shot through his arm.

Fighting to catch her breath, Rae got up from her knees, but her legs protested the movement and she met the carpeted floor once again. Yeah, I'm not getting up. Now was probably the best time to rest anyhow. She had to be at her full strength in case the mutant lizard got any ideas.

She looked up at him from her low position and watched him try to lift his once mangled arm. His hiss and growl was enough translation for her. She wasn't capable of fully restoring him, not with the gruesome wounds he endured. That extent of healing was far beyond what she was capable of. He would survive, but he was still in pain and in no condition to leave.

Rae needed rest and had she not been so close to the aggressive male, she would have had no problem resting on the floor. But she never did have it easy.

Forcing her shaky and aching limbs, she clambered to her feet and wandered over to the other end of the room. There was a cushioned chair against the wall and right beside it was the light switch. As she slowly and painstakingly dragged her feet over there, she caught a glimpse of her patient. The deep and steady rising and falling of his chest relieved her immensely.

He was asleep. Good.

Before Rae could wind down as well, she knew she had to implicate some sort of safety for herself in the case he woke up while she was dozing. She huffed in annoyance. All I want to do is sleep, she moped silently.

Exiting the bedroom to scavenge for the needed materials, she managed to set up her "alarm system," before plopping down in the comfy chair and curling up into a ball. If he so much as moved, she would know about it.

With that comforting thought, she drifted into unconsciousness. Maybe this was just one really bad dream.


Author's Note

Okay, quick question. Is it confusing to change POV's like this or is it fine? Putting lines in between looks weird unless changing scenes and I want it to flow smoothly. Let me know what you thought about the chapter! And thanks for reading!